Bottom five P5 Sagarin teams

Looking at the bottom five P5 in the Sagarin rankings since 2010 shows that the HC will eventually be fired. The only HCs to recover were Cutcliffe, who took over perennial bottom 5 Duke, and Edsall, whose fate is still TBD. Also with Edsall it was his 1st year, so that had something to do with finishing so poorly. So Edsall is the only HC to bring his team down into the bottom 5 and recover. For Shafer to do the same would be an exception to the norm.

2010 Bottom 5

126 Vandy
HC- was fired after season
Record since- 27-24
Best record since- 9-4

119 Kansas
HC- was fired after next season
Record since- 9-39
Best record since- 3-9

102 Wake
HC- was fired 3 years later
Record since- 18-31
Best record since- 6-7

98 Indiana
HC- was fired after season
Record since- 14-34
Best record since- 5-7

96 Purdue
HC- was fired 2 years later
Record since- 17-33
Best record since- 7-6


2011 Bottom 5

139 Indiana
HC- still HC but on hot seat
Record since- 13-23
Best record since- 5-7

113 Duke
HC- as safe as can be
Record since- 24-14
Best record since- 10-4

107 Colorado
HC- was fired next season
Record since- 7-29
Best record since- 4-8

104 Maryland
HC- is safe for now
Record since- 18-19
Best record since- 7-5 with Bowl game pending

103 Ole Miss
HC- was fired after season
Record since- 24-14
Best record since- 9-3 with Bowl game pending


2012 Bottom 5

156 Colorado
HC- was fired after season
Record since- 6-18
Best record since- 4-8

126 Illinois
HC- still HC but on hot seat
Record since- 10-14
Best record since- 6-6 with Bowl game pending

113 BC
HC- was fired after season
Record since- 14-11
Best record since- 7-5 with Bowl game pending

109 Wake
HC- was fired after next season
Record since- 7-17
Best record since- 4-8

104 Washington State
HC- still HC but on edge of hot seat
Record since- 9-16
Best record since- 6-7


2013 Bottom 5

157 Purdue
HC- still HC but on edge of hot seat
2014- 3-9

119 Kansas
HC- was fired next season
2014- 3-9

118 Cal
HC- is safe for now
2014- 5-7

113 NC State
HC- is safe for now
2014- 7-5

106 UVA
HC- still there but on hot seat
2014- 5-7


2014 Bottom 5

127 Wake
HC- 1st season

114 Vandy
HC- 1st season

103 Kansas
HC- was fired

97 SU

92 Purdue
HC- is on edge of hot seat

A look back at last year

A lot of SU fans want to dismiss Shafer's major flaws this year due to injuries. Based on that premise, let us then take a closer look back at last season to see what really happened. Looking at national rankings is highly flawed. Differing schedules can skew the stats quite a bit. So IMO it is better to look at how your opponents did on average against similar caliber teams as yourself. For instance how Penn St did on average vs P5 teams compared to how they did against SU. That will give you a better indicator of how good SU was statistically than their national ranking.

Our opponents offensively averaged vs P5 teams:

26.2 ppg
382.7 ypg
155.0 rypg
227.7 pypg
129.5 QB Rating
2.5 Sacks
6.8 TFL
1.0 INT
0.8 Fumble
38.6% 3rd D
61.0% Redzone TD

vs SU they averaged:

28.5 ppg
397.4 ypg
148.1 rypg
249.3 pypg
135.4 QB Rating
2.7 Sacks
7.2 TFL
1.1 INT
0.6 Fumble
35.6% 3rd D
66.7% Redzone TD

So on D SU was above average in 5 categories and below average in 6 categories. SU was 5% above average in 4 categories, +/- 5% in 3 categories, and 5% below average in 4 categories. When you extend that to 10% then SU was 10% above average in zero categories,  +/- 10% in ten categories, and 10% below average in fumbles recovered.

Statistically SU on D last year was about as average as can be. They were good on 3rd down, at forcing INTs, and getting Sacks/TFLs. They were poor at giving up points, giving up passing yards, forcing fumbles, and keeping teams from TDs once in the Redzone. Surprisingly the SU Run D, which was perceived as a strength, held opponents to a whopping 6.9 yards less then their season average vs P5 schools.

Our opponents defensively averaged vs P5 teams:

26.6 ppg
390.0 ypg
157.2 rypg
232.8 pypg
129.5 QB Rating
2.2 Sacks
6.4 TFL
1.05 INT
0.7 Fumble
37.1% 3rd D
60.3% Redzone TD

vs SU they averaged:

17.2 ppg
354.5 ypg
190.7 rypg
163.7 pypg
95.6 QB Rating
1.55 Sacks
6.2 TFL
1.5 INT
0.45 Fumble
35.75% 3rd D
58.1% Redzone TD

So on O SU was above average in 4 categories and below average in 7 categories. SU was 5% above average in 3 categories, +/- 5% in 3 categories, and 5% below average in 5 categories. When you extend that to 10% SU was 10% above average in 3 categories, +/- 10% in 4 categories, and 10% below average in 4 categories.

Statistically SU on O last year was really good at running the ball and really bad at passing the ball. SU was average on 3rd down and in the Redzone. However scoring SU was really really bad, 9.4 ppg (35.4%) less than average. Given the ineptitude on O it is amazing that McDonald kept his job.

Our opponents on special teams averaged vs P5 schools:

20.7 KR
8.2 PR
21.7 K Cover
8.3 P Cover

vs SU they averaged:

16.3 KR
9.4 PR
19.7 K Cover
9.5 P Cover

So SU on STs was above average in 2 categories and below average in 2 categories. Being very good at covering kickoffs and returning punts, while being very bad at returning kickoffs and covering punts.

In terms of Wins and Losses SU was 5-6 vs P5 teams, which is not bad at all. But in the most important stat: points, which determines who wins games, on average SU was out scored 28.5 to 17.2 (ouch).

Overall statistically 2013 was a bad season for SU. That should be a negative for Shafer. Add that to the negative performance this year and he should clearly be on the hot seat next year.

King Otto to the rescue

Dr Daryl Gross wants change to the ACC divisions. Well I have come to save the day.

Under the current system of playing only 8 ACC games it is impossible to find a perfect solution. I believe my solution gets the most out of an 8 game ACC schedule. 

FSU is still in the Atlantic division every year
Miami is still in the Coastal division every year

The remaining schools are broken into 4 groups of three and rotate divisions every year. Thus:

Year 1: A/B and C/D
Year 2: A/C and B/D
Year 3: A/D and B/C
Year 4: C/D and A/B
Year 5: B/D and A/C
Year 6:  B/C and A/D

The next best football schools are Clemson, Va Tech, Ga Tech, and Louisville so I separated them. I also separated the four remaining private schools: Syracuse, BC, Duke, and Wake. This will bring competition balance.

Group A: Clemson, NC St, Wake
Group B: Va Tech, UVA, BC
Group C: Ga Tech, UNC, Duke
Group D: Louisville, Pitt, Syracuse

Using this system produces the following over 6 seasons:

Each school plays 4 teams six times each
2 teams four times each
2 teams three times each
5 teams twice each

The exception is FSU and Miami, who do not rotate. 

My solution is much better than the current set up of:

Playing 7 teams six times each
6 teams once each

What kind of conference can you be if you play some teams once every 12 seasons at home?

Here is the breakdown for each school using my system: 

FSU
Every year they play Miami and Clemson. 4 times out of 6 years they play Ga Tech, Va Tech, and BC. 3 times out of 6 years they play everyone else.

Miami
Every year FSU and Va Tech. 4 of 6 Ga Tech, Louisville, Clemson. 3 of 6 everyone else.

Clemson
Every year Wake, NC St, Ga Tech, FSU. 4 of 6 Miami and Pitt. 3 of 6 Va Tech and Louisville. Everyone else 2 of 6.

NC St
Every year Wake, Clemson, UNC, and Syracuse. 4 of 6 Duke and Pitt. 3 of 6 FSU and Miami. Everyone else 2 of 6.

Wake
Every year Clemson, NC St, Duke, Louisville. 4 of 6 UVA and Syracuse. 3 of 6 Miami and FSU. Everyone else 2 of 6. 

Va Tech
Every year BC, UVA, Pitt, Miami. 4 of 6 UNC and FSU. 3 of 6 Clemson and Ga Tech. Everyone else 2 of 6.

UVA
Every year BC, Va Tech, UNC, Duke. 4 of 6 Syracuse and Wake. 3 of 6 Miami and FSU. Everyone else 2 of 6.

BC
Every year UVA, Va Tech, Syracuse, Pitt. 4 of 6 FSU and Duke. 3 of 6 Miami and Ga Tech. Everyone else 2 of 6.

Ga Tech
Every year Duke, UNC, Clemson, Louisville. 4 of 6 FSU and Miami. 3 of 6 BC and Va Tech. Everyone else 2 of 6.

UNC
Every year Duke, Ga Tech, NC St, UVA. 4 of 6 Va Tech and Louisville. 3 of 6 FSU and Miami. Everyone else 2 of 6.

Duke
Every year UVA, UNC, Wake, Ga Tech. 4 of 6 BC and NC St. 3 of 6 FSU and Miami. Everyone else 2 of 6.

Louisville
Every year Syracuse, Pitt, Ga Tech, Wake. 4 of 6 UNC and Miami. 3 of 6 FSU and Clemson. Everyone else 2 of 6.

Pitt
Every year BC, Syracuse, Va Tech, Louisville. 4 of 6 Clemson and NC St. 3 of 6 Miami and FSU. Everyone else 2 of 6.

Syracuse
Every year Pitt, BC, Louisville, NC St. 4 of 6 UVA and Wake. 3 of 6 FSU and Miami. Everyone else 2 of 6.

So to use Syracuse as an example compare the after (above) to the before (below) under the current set up:

6 games vs FSU, Clemson, Louisville, Pitt, BC, NC St, Wake
1 game vs Miami, Va Tech, Ga Tech, UVA, UNC, Duke

Clemson (-4)
FSU (-3)
Wake (-2)
Louisville, Pitt, BC, NC St (=)
Va Tech, Ga Tech, UNC, Duke (+1)
Miami (+2)
UVA (+3)

So Syracuse essentially is trading FSU for Miami/Ga Tech, Clemson for UVA/Va Tech, and Wake for UNC/Duke. 

Peer programs

So who have been our peers that last 12 years? To compare I am going to look at Big 5 programs within +/- 10 in the Sagarin rankings each year.



2001 SU 13th
Peers: Texas, Tenn, Neb, Oregon, Oklahoma, Colorado, FSU, MD, LSU, Wash St, Stanford, Illinois, UCLA, South Carolina, Michigan, Virginia Tech, Georgia, K St, UNC

2002 SU 77th
Peers: Zona, Stanford, Utah, UNC, Mich St

2003 SU 61st
Peers: South Carolina, Colorado, Northwestern, ASU, Louisville, UCLA, Stanford, PSU

2004 SU 62nd
Peers: Iowa St, Wash St, South Carolina, Pitt, Northwestern, Kansas, Bama, Mizzou, K St, Penn St, Mich St, Wake, Neb

4 year avg (Coach P years) 53.25
Top Peers: Stanford (3), South Carolina (3)

Current SU 77th
Peers: Stanford 7th, South Carolina 12th

We are in worse shape than both of those peers. Not a surprise that the last 9 years we have fallen.




2005 SU 114th
Peers: Miss St. Only team worse was Duke.

2006 SU 66th
Peers: K St, Purdue, Vandy, Kansas, UVA, Miss, NC St

2007 SU 113th
Peers: Duke, Baylor, Minn. Only Baylor and Minnesota were worse.

2008 SU 104th
Peers: Michigan, Iowa St. Teams worse Iowa St, Indiana, Wash, Wash St.

4 year avg (GRob years) 99.25

Current SU 77th
Peers: Baylor 4th, Duke 50th, Iowa St 76th, Kansas 104th, K St 32nd, Michigan 35th, Minn 59th, Miss 26th, Miss St 53rd, NC St 87th, Purdue 134th, Vandy 45th, UVA 86th

We are in worse shape than eight of those peers, better than two, and on par with three. Not a surprise that the last 5 years we have been mediocre.




2009 SU 83rd
Peers: UVA, NC St, Purdue, Duke, Baylor, Michigan, Louisville, Colorado

2010 SU 48th
Peers: MD, Illinois, Miami, UNC, Texas Tech, BC, PSU, Louisville, Clemson, Georgia

2011 SU 86th
Peers: Wash St, Kentucky, Oregon St, Minn, BC, Kansas

2012 SU 38th
Peers: ASU, PSU, UCLA, USC, Mich St, Texas Tech, Mizzou, Miss St, UNC, Zona, GA Tech, WV

4 year avg (Marrone years) 63.75
Top Peers: BC (2), UNC (2), Louisville (2), Texas Tech (2)

Current SU 77th
Peers: BC 74th, UNC 56th, Louisville 13th, Texas Tech 25th

We are worse than three of those peers, on par with one. Not a surprise as this year has been a poor one.




12 year avg 72.08
Top Peers: UNC (4), Penn St (4), Colorado (3), Kansas (3), K St (3), Louisville (3), Michigan (3), Michigan St (3), South Carolina (3), Stanford (3), UCLA (3), Wash St (3)

Current SU 77th
Peers: UNC 56th, Penn St 48th, Colorado 93rd, Kansas 104th, K St 32nd, Louisville 13th, Michigan 35th, Mich St 19th, South Carolina 12th, Stanford 7th, UCLA 17th, Wash St 47th

We are worse then ten of those teams, and better than two.




It was obvious that we were on a downward trend under Coach P, and he deserved to get fired. GRob then accelerated that into a downward spiral. How he survived to coach a 4th season is a mystery. Marrone did a good job of stabilizing the program and getting it headed in the right direction. However, as you can see above there have been schools in a similar boat who have not only stabilized but have been on an accelerated upward trend. Because of that you cannot say that Marrone did a good job. Decent sure, but he shouldn't be praised as a savior.  There are teams currently in a lot better shape that started as peers to SU when Marrone took over.

As a further example look at 2007-2009. That is GRob's last two years and Marrone's first year stuck with GRob kids. The SU avg rank was 100. That avg is similar to:

Washington St 109 avg, Current 47th
Indiana 98.3 avg, Current 49th
Iowa St 90.7 avg, Current 76th
Baylor 87.7 avg, Current 4th
Minnesota 87.3 avg, Current 59th
Washington 82 avg, Current 18th
Duke 81.3 avg, Current 50th

Yes we had the 2nd worst Big 5 avg from 2007-2009, but we have not made even close to the jump that Baylor or Washington have. And we still are in a similar spot as Duke, Indiana, ISU, Minn, and WSU. Marrone should get credit for improving things. The program is in better shape than when he took over. We certainly could have stayed down. But he shouldn't be praised as the savior of the program. Compared to our peers did he do better than Briles, Cutcliffe, Wilson, Rhoads, Kill, Sarkisian, or Leach? Or did he do a decent job which is similar to what most coaches would do?

How SU should recruit

I looked back at data from the 2000-2012 NFL draft to see where players came from. Here is what I found at each position:


Quaterbacks (minimum 5 players)
California 26
Texas 15
Alabama 7
Pennsylvania 7
Louisiana 6
Ohio 6
Oregon 6

New York 0.0

This tells me SU should be recruiting QBs from either PA or OH from within our territory.

Running Backs (minimum 10 players)
California 25
Florida 24
Texas 24
Virginia 20
Ohio 13
Louisiana 11

New York 3

For RBs SU should be recruiting FL, VA, or OH within our area.

Wide Receivers (minimum 12 players)
California 51
Florida 50
Texas 37
Louisiana 22
Georgia 17
Ohio 14
Virginia 14

New York 4

For WRs SU should be recruiting FL, GA, OH, or VA.

Tightends (minimum 7 players)
California 13
Texas 12
Florida 7
Georgia 7
Ohio 7
Pennsylvania 7
Virginia 7

New York 2

For TEs it doesn't seem to matter as much as they are spread out in many places. Three other states have 6 players and another three states have 5 players. That makes 13 states with 5+ TEs.

Centers (minimum 3 players)
California 12
Texas 10
Ohio 8
Florida 5
Arizona 3
Hawaii 3
North Carolina 3

New York 2

For Cs it is another position that doesn't seem to matter much. Maybe OH and FL are the bests bet for SU.

Guards (minimum 7 players)
California 16
Texas 13
Florida 10
Ohio 8
Pennsylvania 8
Mississippi 7

New York 3

For Gs SU should recruit FL, OH, and PA.

Tackles (minimum 8 players)
California 28
Texas 25
Florida 13
Louisiana 10
Michigan 9
Georgia 8
Ohio 8

New York 7

For Ts it is pretty spread out as well. NY surprisingly is right up there. SU should recruit at home along with FL, GA, and OH. Another 8 states all East of the Mississippi have 5-7 Ts (not including NY).


Overall for the Offense the states that stand out within SU's recruiting territory are FL and OH. After that should come GA, PA, and VA. If you notice I mentioned a Midwestern state ONCE. Hopefully our staff wakes up and stops recruiting those areas.


Defensive Ends (minimum 11 players)
Texas 31
Florida 23
California 22
Georgia 17
Alabama 12
South Carolina 12

New York 4

For DEs SU should recruit FL, GA, and SC.

Defensive Tackles (minimum 10)
Florida 24
Texas 20
California 17
Georgia 12
South Carolina 10
Alabama 10

New York 2

For DTs SU should recruit FL, GA, and SC. Interesting that SC is good at producing NFL DEs and DTs.

Linebackers (minimum 12)
California 47
Florida 37
Texas 28
Georgia 20
Alabama 12
Ohio 12

New York 7

For LBs SU should recruit FL, GA, and OH. NY isn't too bad for LBs.

DBs (minimum 19 players)
Florida 74
California 67
Texas 59
Georgia 32
Louisiana 30
Ohio 27

New York 10

For DBs SU should recruit FL, GA, and OH.


Overall for the D the stand out states are FL and GA. SC is good for DL and OH for the back 7.


Kickers

The top two states with California and Florida with 4 each. Three other states have 2 each. So there doesn't seem to be state that stands out. It is funny though that FL again comes out on top though. NY had zero.

Punters

Ohio and Texas lead with 4. California and Louisiana are the only other states with more than one punter, having two each. NY did have one punter.



Overall Players (Top 10 states)
California 330
Texas 280
Florida 275
Georgia 134
Ohio 122
Louisiana 106
Virginia 96
Alabama 83
South Carolina 73
Michigan 70
Pennsylvania 70

New York 45

SU has six of the Top 10 states within its recruiting area. Those states along with NY should be where SU is concentrating. SU plays in a conference that includes schools in FL, GA, VA, SC, and PA. Two conference mates are right near OH, SU isn't too far away either, and SU often plays OH MAC teams. Add in SU's home state of NY and nearby NJ, and that gives you where SU should recruit. That is it.

All this Midwest recruiting makes no sense. There is not a lot of talent there. SU does not play games in those areas. Sure Michigan has better talent than New York, but the difference between the two (25) is the same as the difference between Michigan and Virginia (26). SU has three commits this year from Illinois, which only had 60 players drafted in the 2000s.

I understand that Shafer was hired late and had limited options. So he went with guys he knew, and being a guy with a Midwestern background he ended up with Midwestern assistants. That is fine for this year. But next year that needs to change significantly. Shafer needs to have on staff a FL guy, a GA/SC guy, an OH/Western PA guy, an Eastern PA/NJ/NYC guy, a VA/NC/MD guy, and an Upstate NY/New England guy.

Those are the six territories SU should recruit. Shafer should split that between the QB, RB, WR, DL, LB, and DB coaches. If a current coach doesn't fit into one of those territories they need to be replaced. The primary skill of all those coaches should be recruiting. Leave the Xs and Os to the HC, OC, and DC. The position coaches need to funnel talent to those three who then need to close.  I left the OL coach out of the mix as I believe that is the only position coach where technique is more important than talent.

So if Shafer or any future coach wants to be successful, they should follow this plan.

Doing Herm Frazier's job

Going forward this is how SU should schedule:

One 1AA/FCS team

This should be Colgate every year. Out of all the 1AA schools out there this will get the most fan interest and even a few Colgate fans showing up in the Dome. By 2016 they will count toward Bowl eligibility (maybe even by 2015) as they now give out scholarships. Nova has been rumored for the 2014 schedule, if not I would add Albany if they are eligible. Same thing in 2015, if Colgate is not eligible yet take Albany or if need be Wagner. Also if possible we should schedule the Colgate game for the first weekend of October every year. Why? Because they are the perfect opponent for homecoming (which will also help attendance). In addition maybe Colgate would be open to having their homecoming the same weekend (again helping attendance). They are close enough and it would be a bigger event than a home game vs a 1AA team. So it would be a dual/duel homecoming game, the first of its kind. If SU plays Colgate every year starting in 2015 then SU will have only played Pitt more (by 3 games). For Colgate they have only played Cornell and Holy Cross more.

Two non Big 5 teams

With 8 difficult ACC games it is important that SU has three cupcakes to ensure a Bowl game. SU could have a pretty decent squad and still end up 3-5 in the ACC. Playing two Big 5 schools OOC leaves zero margin for error. SU isn't in the Big East anymore, where it had to schedule OOC to stay relevant. So who are the best schools to play? Simple, schools located in areas SU recruits. These would be the following:

Akron and Kent St- they help to recruit Cleveland area high schools. SU can do a 2 for 1 series so that families from this area can have easy travel in Ohio and to Pittsburgh every other year.

Ohio- they help to recruit Columbus area high schools. Families can make trips to Pittsburgh and Louisville every other year.

Miami OH- they help to recruit Cincinnati area high schools. Families can make trips to Louisville every other year.

FAU and FIU- they help to recruit Miami area high schools. These schools are important to play as SU does not play in the Miami area often enough. As of now it will be once in 12 seasons. Should the ACC go to 9 conference games it would still be once in 6 years.

Georgia State- they help recruit in Georgia, where just like in Miami we do not play often enough. Clemson is not far from Northern Georgia/Atlanta but having Georgia State will help.

Temple- they will help recruit Eastern PA and Southern NJ. Those are two traditional recruiting areas for SU where close games are not played for families to attend.

That is it. SU should only play those 8 schools. As a fan I would enjoy seeing Army, Buffalo, Navy, Tulane, UConn, UMass but those schools do nothing for the program. Also Cincy, UCF, USF are too difficult of games to add to the schedule even though they are in recruiting areas.

One Big 5 team

We know that SU has MD in 2014 and 2019. ND in 2014 and 2016, then at least once every three years. Supposedly SU has PSU in 2020 and 2021. We also know that the Metlife contract means SU will be playing there every other year from 2019-2038. That contract could be difficult to fill. Only a few schools will make it worth playing there. That number decreased with Rutgers moving to the B1G. Why would Ohio St or Michigan want to play at Metlife game when they already go to NJ every other year? Schools that might be open to doing a one game series at Metlife:

BYU, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Wisconsin

Those are the only schools that I believe would be open to a one game series and fill the stadium. Other schools would either want a return trip (an unacceptable 1-0-1 series) or have no reason to ever play a game at Metlife. Even if you get all five of those schools you still need 5 more games to fill the contract. If ND agrees, SU can have the ACC/ND games all be at Metlife. ND would lose a home game but they also wouldn't have to go to the Carrier Dome. That would cover three to seven games depending on how the ACC allocates the ND games. Also SU can offer the same deal to Penn St. No game at Happy Valley in exchange for none in the Dome. The last desperate possibilities would be WV and Rutgers. I think both would be open to a 1-1-1 series.

So what about the years we do not play at Metlife? That too will be difficult. The B12, B1G, and P12 already have committed to 9 game conference schedules. The SEC is likely to follow. That will limit the pool of OOC games available. Most name schools will look to schedule other name schools or one game series in NFL stadiums. Getting a name school OOC to the Dome may be a thing of the past. SU can likely still get middle of the pack Big 5 schools but I prefer SU keep OOC games to traditional rivals. This would mean games against MD, Penn St, Rutgers, and WV. Personally I like variety and going to trips in Chicago, LA, Seattle, etc but playing those games are unnecessary trips that do nothing for the program. Which schools are likely to get bigger crowds to the Dome your local rivals or schools that are far away? Which schools are in SU's recruiting area, local rivals or schools from the Midwest, Southwest, and West? What is better for the players short trips or long ones? So I would like to see SU rotate those four schools as OOC games.



There are a lot of factors that could easily change the scheduling landscape. The ACC could go to 9 conference games (my guess not before 2020 because of future schedules). ND could join the ACC full time (my guess not before 2026 because of the NBC contract). A 13th game could be added to the schedule (should happen once the SEC goes to 9 conference games). The Big 5 could create their own division (doubtful). Or they could agree to not play 1AA teams (also doubtful). Maybe the Metlife contract never happens (possible if the two ND games have weak showings). Without knowing what will happen, we can only plan using the current environment. So here is my solution to the next 11 seasons (what the ACC has already scheduled out):

2014
6 Home MD, Nova, Duke, FSU, Louisville, NC St
5 Away Akron, BC, Clemson, Pitt, Wake
1 Neutral ND (Metlife)

2015
7 Home Akron, FIU, Colgate, BC, Clemson, Pitt, Wake
5 Away Vandy (not many choices), FSU, Louisville, NC St, UVA

2016
6 Home Akron, Colgate, FSU, Louisville, NC St, Virginia Tech
5 Away FIU, BC, Clemson, Pitt, Wake
1 Neutral ND (Metlife)

2017
8 Home Colgate, FIU, Georgia St, Vandy (needs to be home as road slate difficult), BC, Clemson, Pitt, Wake
4 Away FSU, Louisville, Miami, NC St

2018
7 Home Colgate, FAU, Georgia St, FSU, Louisville, UNC, NC St
5 Away ND (SU will play ND once or twice between 2017 and 2019, the game fits best for SU here), BC, Clemson, Pitt, Wake

2019
6 Home Colgate, FAU, BC, Clemson, Pitt, Wake
6 Away Georgia St, MD, Duke, FSU, Louisville, NC St

2020
6 Home Colgate, Miami OH, FSU, Georgia Tech, Louisville, NC St
5 Away FAU, BC, Clemson, Pitt, Wake
1 Neutral PSU (Metlife moved game)

2021
7 Home Colgate, Miami OH, Temple, BC, Clemson, Pitt, Wake
4 Away FSU, Louisville, NC St, VT
1 Neutral PSU (Metlife moved game)

2022
6 Home Colgate, FIU, FSU, Louisville, NC St, UVA
5 Away Miami OH, BC, Clemson, Pitt, Wake
1 Neutral ND (Metlife)

2023
6 Home Colgate, FIU, BC, Clemson, Pitt, Wake
6 Away MD, Temple, FSU, Louisville, UNC, NC St

2024
7 Home Colgate, MD, Temple, FSU, Louisville, Miami, NC St
5 Away FIU, BC, Clemson, Pitt, Wake


As you can see above, SU has some really difficult years ahead in the ACC. The most difficult is when SU has FSU, Louisville, and Miami/VT all at home or all on the road in one year. In 2016 it will be a great year just to make a Bowl. That is why SU needs to have 3 cupcakes on the schedule every year. The conference schedule is difficult enough.

Tale of the Tape: Syracuse at Minnesota

Welcome to this week’s ToT where the Syracuse Orange take on the Minnesota Golden Gophers. We need to go out and beat every one of them. We don’t even have to have a reason. Our players should have a license to beat the Gophers by the government of the United Nations. To win you must know your enemy, and in this case the enemy is a varmint. And a varmint will never quit, ever. They’re like the Viet Cong, Varmint Cong. So we will have to fall back on superior intelligence and superior firepower. In order to conquer the Gophers we need to learn to think like a Gopher. So let’s take a look…

They were…

Born on Date

Minn: 1851 vs SU: 1870

Otto’s Edge: Minn… although they didn’t have students until 1867 due to financial issues.

In the city of…

GPS

Minn: Twin Cities (Minneapolis-Saint Paul) vs SU: Salt City

Otto’s Edge: Minn… two is better than one

Where they hold the…

State Fair

Minn: in St Paul vs SU: in Syracuse

Otto’s Edge: Minn… because of heavy traffic from the fair, classes do not start at Minn until after the fair is over. I wish we did that for our first home game so people would show up.

People also enjoy going to the…

Mall

Minn: Mall of America vs SU: Destiny

Otto’s Edge: Minn… the largest in the US

Malls have plenty of…

Stores

Minn: Target vs SU: Wegmans

Otto’s Edge: SU… screw the French

The Target Center is where BBall was played by…

Former T-Wolves

Minn: ex GM Kevin McHale, ex HC Flip Saunders vs SU: ex players Jonny Flynn and Wes Johnson

Otto’s Edge: SU… they didn’t put the team in a hole

Getting out of a hole is easier when you have a…

3pt sharp shooter

Minn: Trent Tucker vs SU: GMac

Otto’s Edge: Minn… he could hit a shot with only 0.1 secs left

Sticking with BBall…

Former Pro Franchises

Minn: Lakers, NorthStars vs SU: Nationals (76ers)

Otto’s Edge: Minn… they eventually got replacements while Syracuse is now a one horse town

That horse has been playing since…

1^st year of FB

Minn: 1882 vs SU: 1889

Otto’s Edge: Minn… although they do not have as many

All Time Ws

Minn: 651 vs SU: 692

Otto’s Edge: SU… however they have more

National Champs

Minn: 6 vs SU: 1

Otto’s Edge: Minn… who knew?

Speaking of which…

We’re going streaking

Minn: three straight titles from 1934-1936 (last team to do so). During that time they had a 28 game unbeaten streak with a string of 21 straight Ws.

Vs SU:  22 straight .500 or better seasons 1950-1971 and 15 straight winning seasons 1987-2001

Otto’s Edge: Minn… they also won back to back in 1940-41 with an 18 game W streak. Their last title was in 1960 in which they lost to Wash in the Rose Bowl (polls ended before Bowls back then).

They got to the Rose Bowl by winning their…

Conference

Minn: B1G vs SU: BE

Otto’s Edge: Minn… but the ACC is getting closer every day

In that conference each has been…

Conference Champs

Minn: 18 vs SU: 4

Otto’s Edge: Minn… they haven’t won since 1967 and haven’t been to the Rose since 1961

That has resulted in a…

Bowl Record

Minn: 5-9 vs SU: 13-9-1

Otto’s Edge: SU… pretty healthy lead

But we do not lead…

Head to Head

Minn: 2 Ws vs SU 1 W

Otto’s Edge: Minn… hopefully we even it up

Having only played 3 times we certainly are not…

Rivalry Trophies

Minn: Paul Bunyans Axe (Wisc 1948), Floyd of Rosedale (Iowa 1935), Governors Victory Bell (PSU 1993), Little Born Jug (Mich 1903) vs SU: Schwartzwalder Trophy (WV 1993)

Otto’s Edge: Minn… their rivalry with Wisc is the most played game in D1A. Since 1890 they have played 121 times (having only missed 1906). Before the Axe they played for the Slab of Bacon, a piece of wood with an M or W depending on how you held it. The trophy was lost in 1943. The schools also partake in the Border Battle, a year long competition for each sport in which 40 points are allocated. So the FB game winner gets 40 points and each basketball game is worth 20 points each.

Speaking of trophies…

CFB Award

Minn: Bronko Nagurski Trophy ( D MVP) vs SU: Mackey Trophy (TE)

Otto’s Edge: Minn… more important

But the most important trophy is the…

Heisman

Minn: Bruce Boo Smith (1941) vs SU: Ernie Davis (1961)

Otto’s Edge: SU… Davis was a part of

African American History

Minn: Bobby Marshall (1^st Big 9 AA player and along with Fritz Pollard 1^st AA in NFL) vs SU: Ernie Davis first AA Heisman winner

Otto’s Edge: Push… we are all winners here

Davis was coached by…

Best HC

Minn: Bernie Bierman (16 years, 93-35-6 record, 6 B1G titles, 5 National, 5 undefeated seasons) vs SU: Ben Schwartzwalder

Otto’s Edge: Minn… that was a great stretch

From college to pros…

NFL HC

Minn: Bud Grant vs SU: Tom Coughlin

Otto’s Edge: Minn… we all know about the four SB Ls by Grant’s Vikings but he also went to six Grey Cups winning four of them. He also played on the 1950 NBA Champion Lakers. In addition Tony Dungy went to Minn.

Grant is also a…

NFL HoFers

Minn: 6 (Bobby Bell, Carl Eller, Bud Grant, Bronko Nagurski, Leo Nomellini, Charlie Sanders) vs SU: 7 (Jim Brown, Kim Ringo, Larry Csonka, John Mackey, Al Davis, Art Monk, Floyd Little)

Otto’s Edge: SU… however they beat us in

CFB HoFers

Minn: 22 (Bert Baston, Bobby Bell, Bernie Bierman, Tom Brown, Fritz Crisler, Carl Eller, George Franck,. Paul Giel, Lou Holtz, Herb Joesting, Pug Lund, Bobby Marshall, John McGovern, Bronk Nagurski, Leo Nomellini, Eddie Rogers, Bruce Smith (not of Buffalo fame), Sandy Stephens, Clayton Tonnemaker, Ed Widseth, Dick Wildung (awesome name), Henry Williams)

vs SU: 14 (Biggie Munn, Buck ONeill, Ben Schwartzwalder, Joe Alexander, Larry Csonka, Ernie Davis, Vic Hanson, Floyd Little, Jim Brown, Tim Green, Don McPherson, Tad Jones, Howard Jones, Dick MacPherson)

Otto’s Edge: Minn… one of those for SU was a

Denver Bronco Great

Minn: Karl Macklenburg vs SU: Floyd Little

Otto’s Edge: SU… although they got a steal with the 12^th round, 310^th pick

Another great RB was…

Boston Pats Great

Minn: Gino Cappelletti vs SU: Jim Nance

Otto’s Edge: Minn… he is the AFLs all time leading scorer (mostly as a K) and a Top 10 WR. In addition he played DB and returned kicks.

While we are on Kicking…

NFL Ks

Minn: Chip Lohmiller vs SU: Gary Anderson, Olinda Mare

Otto’s Edge: SU… a Chip is something that you eat

Speaking of which…

NFL DL Great

Minn: Carl Eller vs SU: Freeney

Otto’s Edge: Minn… win goes to the Purple People Eater, for now

Let’s put the women and Cchildren to bed and go lookin for dinner

Minn: Lutefisk (Scandinavian fish dish) vs SU: Salt Potatoes

Otto’s Edge: SU… a potato is a vegetable and not a fruit like

Apples

Minn: Haralson, Honeycrisp (both developed at Minn) vs SU: Cortland, Empire, Northern Spy

Otto’s Edge: SU… NY is the 2^nd biggest apple producing state

The Big Apple is where we play some of our home games…

No one, and I mean no one, comes into our house and pushes us around

Minn: TCF Bank Stadium vs SU: Carrier Dome

Otto’s Edge: Push… both are missed named. Ours does not have AC and theirs is not a bank.

Before that they played in a…

Dome

Minn: Metro vs SU: Carrier

Otto’s Edge: SU… really, you named it after metros?

Other Past Stadiums

Minn: Northrop Field (1899-1923), Memorial (known as the Brick House 1924-1981) vs SU: Archbold Stadium

Otto’s Edge: Minn… they had greater success in theirs

In the stadiums you can often hear the…

Fight Song

Minn: Minnesota Rouser vs SU: Down, Down the Field

Otto’s Edge: SU… no one likes a trouble maker

Someone often causing trouble…

Mascot

Minn: Goldy the Gopher vs SU: Otto the Orange

Otto’s Edge: SU… Goldy? Really?

The mascot often gets the crowd to…

Cheer

Minn: Ski-U-Mah vs SU: Let’s Go Orange

Otto’s Edge: SU… Ski is a Sioux battle cry and U Mah is for U of M

Orange is the…

School Colors

Minn: Maroon & Gold vs SU: Orange

Otto’s Edge: SU… which is often worn by the

Students

Minn: 52k  vs SU: 20k

Otto’s Edge: Minn… they are huge

Students live in

Minn: Dinkytown vs SU: South Campus

Otto’s Edge: SU… Dinkytown is just North of campus. The area has small business, restaurants, bars, and apartments that house mostly students.

They get around by…

Walkways

Minn: the Gopher Way (tunnels) vs SU: walking between snow banks

Otto’s Edge: Minn… also Minn has a busway that was created in 1992. However there were many accidents the first 5 years. So they used a new invention called stop signs to alleviate the problem.

Students are there for an…

Edumacation

Minn: 68^th vs SU: 58^th

Otto’s Edge: SU… boy being in the ACC is paying off already.

Which reminds me of the big dance back in St. Olaf to kick off Pretzel Week. It was covered in the…

School Paper

Minn: The Minnesota Daily (est 1900) vs SU: Daily Orange (1903)

Otto’s Edge: SU… they only prints M-Th with Friday being an online only version.

From print media to…

TV News

Minn: Aaron Brown vs SU: Ted Koppel and many others

Otto’s Edge: SU… always big news are elections

State once elected

Minn: Jesse Ventura, Al Franken vs SU: Hillary Clinton

Otto’s Edge: Minn… if Howard Stern runs as Jesse’s VP I might have to vote him President

Staying with VPs…

VP

Minn: Hubert Humphrey, Walter Mondale vs SU: Joe Biden

Otto’s Edge: SU… he is still in office (for the time being)

Other Politicians

Minn: Eugene McCarthy, Tim Pawlenty vs SU: Al D’Amato

Otto’s Edge: SU… NY is more important

An important position at a school is the…

School President

Minn: Rodney Erickson (PSU) vs SU: Donna Shalala (Miami)

Otto’s Edge: Push… both have FB programs in big trouble

Someone who was trouble for their opponent…

Pro Wrestling

Minn: Rick Flair, Brock Lesner vs SU: Mike Rotunda

Otto’s Edge: Minn… Wooooo!

Staying with wrassling…

Other sports known for

Minn: Hockey, Wrestling vs SU: Lax

Otto’s Edge: Minn… since we no longer have a wrestling program. Their hockey team has 5 titles and 20 Frozen Fours. Herb Brooks and 9 members of 1980 US team were Gophers. Side note: men’s hockey plays in Mariucci Arena while the women play in Ridder Arena (sounds like a dirty name), the 1^st dedicated women’s hockey arena. Minn wrestling has been around 95 seasons.

A sport that has been around a long time…

Baseball

Minn: Paul Molitor, Terry Steinbach, Dave Winfield vs SU: has a minor league team

Otto’s Edge: Minn… Big Dave was my fav as a youngin

Miscellaneous Athlete

Minn: Tom Lehman vs SU: Myer Prinstein (Gold medalist 1900 Triple Jump, 1904 Triple and Long Jumps)

Otto’s Edge: SU… from little known to why are they known?

BBall player with celeb wife

Minn: Kris Humphries (Kim Kardashian) vs SU: Melo (La La)

Otto’s Edge: SU… Kris is no longer married

La La works with…

Musicians

Minn: Yanni, Bob Dylan vs SU: Lou Reed

Otto’s Edge: SU… Yanni, enough said.

While we are taking a walk on the wild side…

Adult stars

Minn: Dahm Triplets vs SU: Lexington Steele

Otto’s Edge: Minn… hey now!

Speaking of which…

Fictional Alumn

Minn: Larry Sanders vs SU: Veronica Corningstone

Otto’s Edge:  Push… those were characters played by

Actors

Minn: Loni Anderson, Henry Fonda, Ron Perlman, Robert Vaughn, Peter Graves vs SU: Vanessa Williams, Peter Falk, Jerry Stiller, Taye Diggs, Peter Weller

Otto’s Edge: Minn… this ToT will self destruct in five seconds.

But not before the category of the year…

WWTD?

Minn: cheer that the backup QB is starting vs SU: cheer that we finally run a college O

Otto’s Edge: SU… our situation is an improvement

And there you have it. Minnesota will win by a final score of 27-24. In the immortal words of Jean Paul Sartre, au revoir Gophers.

Tale of the Tape: Stony Brook vs Syracuse

Welcome to this week’s ToT where the State University of New York at Stony Brook takes on Syracuse University.

Born on Date

SB: 1957 vs SU: 1870

Otto’s Edge: SU… SB was founded as the State University Center on Long Island at Oyster Bay before changing location and names

Speaking of location…

GPS

SB: Long Island vs SU: CNY

Otto’s Edge: SU… LI is a PIA to get to and fro

While we are on PIAs…

Famous female talk show hosts

SB: Dr Laura, Joy Behar vs SU: Megyn Kelly

Otto’s Edge: SU… not quite as racey

Sort of a race…

We’re going streaking

SB: won three straight conf titles vs SU: lost seven straight games

Otto’s Edge: SB… hopefully we finally end ours

Staying with championships…

Conf FB Titles

SB: 4 (3 Big South, 1 Northeast) vs SU: 4 BE

Otto’s Edge: Push… tied up

And those titles were won in…

FB Conference

SB: Big South vs SU: Big East

Otto’s Edge: Push.. it doesn’t make sense that SB is in the Big South or that the Big East has very few Eastern schools. Thankfully both are moving on next year as SB is going Colonial (along with Albany) and SU to the ACC. SB was in the NEC prior to the Big South. For other sports SB is in the America East Conference.

While we are on Albany…

Biggest Rival

SB: Albany (5-9) vs SU: PSU (23-40-5)

Otto’s Edge: SB… they will be in the same conference going forward. Currently they are on a break though. The schools played each other from 1995-2007 then stopped when SB went Big South. They did meet each other last year in the playoffs with SB winning. Hofstra ended its FB program before a rivalry could develop. SB had played them 13 times losing every game.

SB doesn’t have much history because…

1^st year of FB

SB: 1969 vs SU: 1889

Otto’s Edge: SU… huge difference

As is our…

All time Ws

SB: 142 vs SU: 691

Otto’s Edge: SU… easy call here

And more disparity…

No one, and I mean no one comes into our house and pushes us around

SB: LaValle Stadium 8,250 vs SU: Dome 49,250

Otto’s Edge: SU… they hosted last year’s Lax final where the Stallers robbed us of a championship

Sticking with Lax…

Conf Tourny Champs

SB: 3 America East vs SU: 1 Big East

Otto’s Edge: SB… pretty sad for such a storied program that we only have 1. SB beat Denver in the NCAAs in 2010 making it to the quarterfinals, their best finish.

SB has also had recent success in…

BBall

SB: won regular season America East in 2010 and 2012 making the NIT both seasons

vs SU: won an NCAA title

Otto’s Edge: SU… a lil more important

The closest to a major title for SB was in…

Baseball

SB: made CWS last year vs SU: made CWS in 1961

Otto’s Edge: SB… they still have the sport playing at Joe Nathan (alumn) Field.

While we are on names…

Last Name

SB: Seawolves vs SU: Orange

Otto’s Edge: SU… they became the Seawolves in 1994 when they moved to D1 sports. They were formally known as the Soundmen, Baymen, and Patriots.

The most famous Orange…

Mascot

SB: Wolfie the Seawolf vs SU: Otto the Orange

Otto’s Edge: SU… Wolfie? Seriously?

Orange is a…

School colors

SB: Scarlet and Grey vs SU: Orange

Otto’s Edge: SU… the best color around

And that is worn by…

Students

SB: 24,500 vs SU: 20,000

Otto’s Edge: SB… slightly larger school

However they don’t get as good of an…

Edumacation

SB: 111^th  vs SU: 62^nd

Otto’s Edge: SU… although SB is in the AAU and SU is no longer

Speaking of longer…

Philip Finch

SB: Michael Bamiro 6’8 345 vs SU: Zion Jones 6’4 335

Otto’s Edge: SB… beating Jones out by 4 inches

While we are on beating, as in ball carriers…

Bobby Boucher

SB: Arvin West vs SU: Shamwow

Otto’s Edge: SU… he will be missed next year

And finally this year’s category of the week…

WWTD (what would Tebow do?)

SB: claim that the Jets are LI’s team so people watch The Faces of Tebow premiering Wed night on the NFL Network (sadly not a joke)

vs SU: claim the Jets are NY State’s team so people in CNY watch

Otto’s Edge: SU… we know that the Jets are the JV team

There you have it. SU will pull out a low scoring, close game by a score of 13-6. Until till next time!

Tale of the Tape: Southern Cal vs Syracuse

Welcome back to the 2nd ToT of the season. Let's get started.

Born on Date

USC: 1880 vs SU: 1870

Otto’s Edge: SU… older and wiser

Edumacation

USC: 23^rd vs SU: 62^nd

Otto’s Edge: USC…  just not smarter

A common choice for major…

Undeclared

USC: shot there vs SU: Ben Stiller, son of Jerry (SU alumn), had a bit part

Otto’s Edge: USC… ok this category was a stretch but that show was awesome so it needed to be added. Judd Apatow is also a USC alumn.

Also appearing in the show…

Anchorman

USC: Will Farrell (alumn) played Ron Burgandy vs SU: Veronica Corningstone character went to SU

Otto’s Edge: USC… she is a smelly pirate hooker

Farrell was also famous for saying…

We’re going streaking

USC: 26 years with at least one athletic title (59-60 to 84-85) vs SU: Lax 22 straight Final Fours

Otto’s Edge: USC… they have the 3^rd most school national titles all time and the most in men’s sports all time

While we are on Lax…

Non major sport awesome at

USC: Baseball 12 titles (most all time) vs SU: Lax 11 titles (most all time)

Otto’s Edge: USC… they have no peer, the next closest school has 6 titles. Players who went to USC include Aaron/Bret Boone, Randy Johnson, Dave Kingman, Fred Lynn, Mark McGwire, Mark Prior, Tom Seaver, and Barry Zito.

Staying with titles…

FB Champs

USC: Seven  vs SU: One

Otto’s Edge: USC… they have been good for a long time

Ever since…

1^st year FB

USC: 1888 vs SU: 1889

Otto’s Edge: Push… it is basically the same

However not the same is our…

All Time Ws

USC: 780 vs SU: 691

Otto’s Edge: USC… well they have been playing longer so we should be behind

When you win you get to play in a…

Bowls

USC: 31-16 vs SU: 13-9-1

Otto’s Edge: USC… very impressive in both number and winning %

Many of those Bowls they got to by winning the…

Founding Member of

USC: P12 vs SU: Big East

Otto’s Edge: USC… at least the P12 has gone from 8 to 10 to 12 in their name unlike this other conferences

Conf Championships

USC: 38 vs SU: 4

Otto’s Edge: USC… they have been the Rutgers of the West

Speaking of West…

GPS

USC: Los Angeles vs SU: Syracuse

Otto’s Edge: SU… I just don’t get LA

Rap

USC: Westside vs SU: Eastside

Otto’s Edge: SU… I miss Biggie. Snoop Lion (formally Dogg) is a USC fan

Fans go to games at…

No one, and I mean no one, comes into our house and pushes us around

USC: Coliseum 93,600 vs SU: Dome 49,250

Otto’s Edge: USC… almost twice as big

Just like the…

Student Size (not a reference to height)

USC: 37k vs SU: 20k

Otto’s Edge: USC… they have the largest number of international students of any university

Internationally known but often confused as…

School type many people think

USC: Public vs SU: Public

Otto’s Edge: Push… both are private schools

The schools are known as…

Last Name

USC: Trojans vs SU: Orange

Otto’s Edge: SU… Trojans is my 3^rd favorite name behind Orange and Orangemen

The schools are represented by…

Mascot

USC: Traveler vs SU: Otto the Orange

Otto’s Edge: SU of course…  Traveler is the white horse and official mascot. Many think that Tommy the Trojan is the school’s mascot.

Also supporting the team is the…

Band

USC: Spirit of Troy vs SU: Pride of the Orange

Otto’s Edge: USC… who play the greatest

Fight Song

USC: Fight On vs SU: Down, Down the Field

Otto’s Edge: USC… hearing it will ease the pain on Saturday

As we play…

Head to Head

USC: 3 vs SU: 0

Otto’s Edge: USC… including a W in the Meadowlands

Encouraging the teams and fans will be the…

Cheerleaders

USC: Song Girls vs SU: nameless

Otto’s Edge: USC… they can perform the perfect cheer

Also helping the team will be the…

Coaches

USC: John McKay, John Robinson, Pete Carroll vs SU: Ben Schwartzwalder, Coach Mac, Coach P

Otto’s Edge: USC… without them there would be no V in victory

Both schools shared HC…

Howard Jones

USC: coached from 1925-1940 winning 4 titles vs SU: coached in 1908

Otto’s Edge: USC… a little more success at USC

Under the coaches were…

Notable players

USC: Pat Hayden, Matt Leinart, Rodney Peete, Carson Palmer, Matt Cassel, Sean Salisbury, Frank Gifford, Steve Smith, Keyshawn Johnson, Lynn Swann, Johnny Morton, Fred Davis, Anthony Munoz, Tony Boselli, Bruce Matthews, Jack Del Rio, Clay Matthews (Jr and III), Brian Cushing, Ronnie Lott, Dennis Smith, Mark Carrier, Tory Polamalu, Joey Browner, Jason Sehorn, Jeff Fisher, Mike Holgren, Al Cowlings

vs SU: McNabb, Graves, McPherson, Moose, Csonka, Nance, Harrison, Moore, Monk, Kevin Johnson, Mackey, Gedney, Ringo, Flannery, Tim Green, Freeney, Bulluck, Conley, Darius, Gary Anderson, Mare

Otto’s Edge: USC… both have impressive lists

But each school is most known for being…

Tailback U

USC: Mike Garrett, OJ Simpson, Ricky Bell, Charles White, Marcus Allen, Reggie Bush vs SU: Jim Brown, Ernie Davis, Floyd Little, Joe Morris

Otto’s Edge: SU… actually USC won the category but had to vacate the win

Some of these guys won the…

Heisman Trophy

USC: 7 winners vs SU: 1 winner

Otto’s Edge: USC… they are tied for most all time if you count Bush’s vacated win

Also of importance to both schools is…

Numbers

USC: 55 (worn by Seau, McGinest, Caliborne) vs SU: 44

Otto’s Edge: SU… offense beats defense here

Staying with D…

Bobby Boucher

USC: TJ McDonald vs SU: Shamwow

Otto’s Edge: USC… he is the better pro prospect

Prospects are usually known as…

Blue Chips

USC: scenes filmed at school vs SU: JB a star

Otto’s Edge: SU… luckily JB didn’t get the acting bug like

Former RB turned actor

USC: OJ Simpson vs SU: Jim Brown

Otto’s Edge: USC… Nordberg had so much potential

Someone else with potential…

Hackett

USC: Paul was HC vs SU: Nate is OC

Otto’s Edge: SU… he hasn’t failed yet

Someone with connections to both Hacketts

TGD

USC: where he wishes he was AD vs SU: where he is AD

Otto’s Edge: Push… while his heart is out there, in order for him to go back he has to be successful here

Other connections between the schools…

Marinovich

USC: Todd vs SU: Mikhail

Otto’s Edge: USC… he had the better college career

Luke Jensen

USC: alumn vs SU: coach

Otto’s Edge: Push… dual hand Luke can be play for both sides

Sometimes he seems like he is on another planet just like…

Astronaut

USC: Neil Armstrong vs SU: Eileen Collins

Otto’s Edge: USC… first man on moon beats first female shuttle commander

He was a great American unlike…

Miss America

USC: Pat Nixon vs SU: Vanessa Williams

Otto’s Edge: Push… both vacated their title in controversy

Other notable Alumni

USC: Ron Howard, George Lucas, Macy Gray, Mark McGrath, LeVar Burton, Anthony Edwards, Michael Landon, Matthew Lawrence, Lisa Ling, Ted McGinley, Timothy Olyphant, Kelly Preston, John Ritter, Kyra Sedgwick, Tom Selleck, Ally Sheedy, Cybill Shepard, Robert Stack, John Wayne, Forest Whitaker, Norman Schwarzkopf, Cindy McCain, Bob Lorenz, Michele Tafoya, Salvatore Ferragamo, Barron Hilton, Rob Kardashian, John Carpenter, Joe Francis, Michael McDonald, Dr Drew, Robert Vaughn

vs SU: Dick Clark, Aaron Sorkin, Lou Reed, Taye Diggs, Peter Falk, Joe Biden, Bob Costas, Mike Tirico, Marv Alvert, Ted Koppel, Lisa Lampanelli, Lexington Steele

Otto’s Edge: USC… some really big names in Hollywood

Speaking of big…

Philip Finch

USC: Zach Banner 6’9 335 vs SU: Zion Jones 6’4 335

Otto’s Edge: USC… wow he is huuuuuge

Sticking with big…

Biggest Rival

USC: UCLA 46-28-7  vs SU: Colgate 30-31-5

Otto’s Edge: USC…  although some would argue that it is ND. USC has played UCLA, ND, Cal, Ore St, Stanford, and Wash all more than any team SU has played. UCLA and USC shared to Coliseum until UCLA moved to the Rose Bowl in 1982.

When they used to play each other both teams would wear their home…

School Colors

USC: Cardinal & Gold vs SU: Orange

Otto’s Edge: SU… let’s go Orange

Which is a chant heard more often for…

BBall Great

USC: Cheryl Miller  vs SU: Dave Bing

Otto’s Edge: SU… even though they also have Lisa Leslie

While we are on BBall…

Sports Management Alumni

USC: Jerry Buss, Frank McCourt vs SU: Al Davis, David Falk

Otto’s Edge: SU… very LA centric

Something else that is very LA…

Now let’s put the women and children to bed and go lookin for dinner

USC: Shelly Hwang (alumn) founded Pinkberry vs SU: Dino BBQ

Otto’s Edge: SU… there will be no chat and cutting tolerated here

And finally the category of the week…

WWTD (what would Tebow do?)

USC: bench alumn Mark Sanchez vs SU: run the Wildcat with Broyld

Otto’s Edge: SU… either way the Jets will score less than Tebow at the Playboy Mansion

And there it is folks, USC will win this one 27-14. Until next time…

Cuse Cast LXII

KingOtto and Cuseman preview the season by breaking down each unit and the offering a prediction of things to come. Including the opener against Northwestern.

Length about 26:45

Tale of the Tape: Northwestern vs Syracuse

I want everybody in the place to put your hands together and make some nah-oys! I can’t hear you. I still can’t hear you! Give it up y’all for the return of the ToT!!!!!!!!!!!

Don’t call it a comeback, ToTs been here for years. Rockin its peers and putting suckas in fear. Some of y’all might know this, and some of y’all don’t. It’s that ol’ skool ToT with that new skool hit. And it goes a little sumptin like this…

Its the sport of kings, better than diamond rings. Football, Wildcats as in NW, SUs first opponent of the year. So with a new season upon us, what will SU do? Well the question isn’t what are we going to do, it’s what aren’t we going to do?

Born on Date
NW: 1851 vs SU: 1870
Otto’s Edge: NW… which was founded to serve the people of the Northwest Territory, hence the name.

Founded by? Anyone? Anyone?
NW: Methodists vs SU: Methodists
Otto’s Edge: Push… John Evans, who Evanston is named after, was one of the founders of NW. Then he became Governor of the Territory of Colorado, founding the University of Denver out there.

Speaking of Evanston...

GPS (location)
NW: Evanston vs SU: Syracuse
Otto’s Edge: NW... they have a tax exempt status and pay no property taxes to the city

Evanston is located on...

Lake
NW: Michigan vs SU: Onondaga
Otto’s Edge: NW… it is a Great Lake after all

Also on Lake Michigan is...

Major City
NW: Chicawgo vs SU: NYC
Otto’s Edge: SU… Orange is in the Apple! Too bad this game wasn’t played closer to NYC or we would win easily.

You can get around Chicago by using the...

Train
NW: Purple Line of the El vs SU: Elmira Express Ernie Davis
Otto’s Edge: SU… let’s see the Purple Line get a movie about it

Sticking with trains, as in minds....

Edumacation
NW: 12^th in US News vs SU: 62nd
Otto’s Edge: NW… our academics have been dropping worse than our FB program

Communications School
NW: Medill vs SU: Newhouse
Otto’s Edge: SU… I dunno which is better but I do know we need a W somewhere

Some of those students run the...

School Paper
NW: Daily NW (1881) vs SU Daily Orange (1903)
Otto’s Edge: Push… I see both schools took a long time thinking up the name.

Sticking with names...

Team Name
NW: Wildcats vs SU: Orange
Otto’s Edge: NW... we should be the OrangeMEN!

A nickname often associated with ones manhood...

Mascot
NW: Willie the Wildcat vs SU: Otto the Orange
Otto’s Edge: SU… Willie sounds like a better name for South Carolina’s mascot

Also supporting the team is the...

Band
NW: NUMB vs SU: SUMB
Otto’s Edge: SU… our band hurts your ears only sumb of the time (that’s because they aren’t large enough to make a lot of noise). The NW band will leave you feeling numb. Bah dum dum.

Staying with numb, as in numbers...

All Time Wins
NW: 489 vs SU: 691
Otto’s Edge: SU… NW holds the all time record for Ls, points allowed, and point differential.

They have been losing since...

First Year of FB
NW: 1876 vs SU: 1889
Otto’s Edge: NW... at least they have been losing to real teams unlike our friends in Jersey

And more NW futility...

We’re going streaking
NW: Losing (34 straight games, 23 straight seasons 1972-1994) vs SU: Winning (15 straight seasons 1987-2001, 22 straight with .500 or better 1950-1971)
Otto’s Edge: SU… when they set the 34 game record in 1981 (losing 61-14 to Mich St), students rushed the field to celebrate, chanting “we’re the worst” and took down the goalposts.

Speaking of Mich St…

Hardest Loss
NW: 41-38 to Mich St in 2006 (biggest comeback in NCAA history) vs SU: home games being moved to MetLife
Otto’s Edge: SU… In that game NW was up 38-3 with under 10 min in the 3rd Q.

Mich State is a conf rival but not NWs...

Biggest Rival
NW: Illinois vs SU: NY State Fair
Otto’s Edge: NW… they used to play Illinois for the Sweet Sioux Tomahawk (until 2008), which has been replaced by the Land of Lincoln Trophy (seriously PC police?). Surprisingly NW only trails Illinois 46-54-5 all time. Also NW has played 8 teams (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Mich, Minn, OSU, UP, and Wisc) more times than anyone SU has played.

And those teams play in the...

Founding Members of
NW: Big Ten vs SU Big East
Otto’s Edge: NW… although we out bitches! BTW NW grads are likely the only ones in the B1G who can count to 12 and know how dumb a name the B1G is.

Conf Championships
NW: 8 vs SU: 4
Otto’s Edge: SU… the BE hasn’t been around as long otherwise we would have more. Even so we have more conf championships since 1936 (4 to 3) and NW had none from 1936-1995.

The conf champ goes to the BCS...

Bowls
NW: 1-9 vs SU: 13-9-1
Otto’s Edge: SU… NWs first Bowl game was the 1949 Rose Bowl. Michigan was the conf champ but the rule back then said a team couldn’t go consecutive years. So NW played instead. Otherwise they would be Bowless until 1995. Ironically the first Bowl was the only one they won. They upset an undefeated Cal team that was coached by Pappy Waldorf, who was NWs coach from 1935-1946 and their All Time W leader.

Sticking with coaches...

Former HCs
NW: Ara Parseghian, Dennis Green vs SU: Ben Schwartzwalder, Coach Mac, Coach P
Otto’s Edge: NW… overall their coaches had more success. Although our coaches were more successful while coaching for SU than they were for NW. Ara is 4th all time in Ws at NW with a 36-35-1 record.

Former player and current HC
NW: Pat Fitzgerlad vs SU: Doug Marrone
Otto’s Edge: NW... Also Fitzgerald won the Nagurski and Bednarik awards as a player. Plus the sportos, the motorheads, geeks, sluts, bloods, waistoids, dweebies, dickheads - they all adore him. They think he's a righteous dude.

While we are on Dudes…

Cleveland Brown Great
NW: Otto Graham vs SU: Jim Brown
Otto’s Edge: Push… Graham attended NW on a BBall schollie and was an All American in 1944. He also played 2 years of Baseball. Oddly he wore number 60 until the NFL put the rule in that linemen need to be numbers 50-79. His record with the Browns was 105-17-4, leading the team to 10 championship games in 10 seasons. He also played one season for the Rochester Royals (BBall), winning the league title.

Tecmo Super Bowl WR
NW: WR Curtis Duncan vs SU: WR Rob Carpenter

Otto’s Edge: SU… Duncan was almost impossible to get receptions for in that game as Hill, Givins, and Jeffires were the 3 best options.

Other Players of Note
NW: Paddy Driscoll, D’Wayne Bates, Steve Tasker, Napoleon Harris, Darnell Autry, Damien Anderson, Mike Adamle, Matt O’Dwyer, Luis Castillo, Barry Gardner vs SU: Donovan McNabb, Rob Moore, Joe Morris, Larry Csonka, Moose Johnston, Floyd Little, Jim Ringo, Tim Green, Ted Gregory
Otto’s Edge: SU… Driscoll is a HoFer, Autry finished 4th in the Heisman, and Adamle was host of American Gladiators but that still isn’t enough to beat out the SU players. Plus many more SU players of note were not mentioned above.

One of those players was…

Rob

NW: Conrad vs SU: Konrad

Otto’s Edge: NW… he is Eveready

Former FB players that turned actors
NW: Fred The Hammer Williamson vs SU: Jim Brown
Otto’s Edge: Push… both were Original Gangstas

They mixed sports and entertainment which is now a specialty of...

ESPN Alumni
NW: J.A. Adande, Kevin Blackistone, Rich Eisen, Mike Greenberg, Brent Musburger, Rachel Nichols, Dave Revsine, Michael Wilbon, Darren Rovell, Adam Rittenburg vs SU: Matthew Berry, Sean McDonough, Dave Pasch, Dave Ryan, Jayson Stark, Mike Tirico, Anish Shroff
Otto’s Edge: SU… sorry but you gave the world Rachel Nichols and need to be punished. Not only does she have no talent, she is hard to look at. Damn HD.

College Sports Writer

NW: Stewart Mandel vs SU: Pete Thamel

Otto’s Edge: Push… both work for Sports Illustrated which I didn’t know still existed.

Other Sports Alumni
NW: Luke Donald, Joe Girardi, Mark Loretta, Todd Martin, Debi Thomas, Matt Grevers vs SU: Melo, Derrick Coleman, Rony Seikaly
Otto’s Edge: SU… we certainly are more of a sports school

Sports Management Alumni
NW: Jerry Reinsdorf, Glen Grunwald vs SU: Al Davis, David Falk
Otto’s Edge: SU... two giants in their sport

Sticking with power...

School President Alumn

NW: Graham Spanier vs SU: Donna Shalala, Mark Emmert

Otto’s Edge: SU… nothing to say (whoops)

Political Alumni
NW: John Paul Stevens, William Jennings Bryan, Dick Gephardt, George McGovern, Adlai Stevenson, Rahm Emanuel vs SU: Al D'Amato, Joe Biden

Otto’s Edge: NW... they have bigger names despite SU having the current VP. Although their guys often lose, just like NW FB.

Sticking with failing...

Alumni that didn’t graduate
NW: Warren Beatty, Ann Margret, Cindy Crawford, Jane Curtin, Shelley Long, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jerry Orbach, Tony Randall, Hugh Hefner, Patti Davis vs SU: Lou Reed
Otto’s Edge: NW... that is a pretty nice list

Julia was on…

Seinfeld

NW: Elaine vs SU: Frank Costanza (Jerry Stiller)

Otto’s Edge: NW… she can drop him like a bag of dirt. Stiller also worked with NW grad Nicole Sullivan (Holly King of Queens)

Speaking of Queens…

Celebrity Apprentice

NW: Rob Blagojevich vs SU: Lisa Lampanelli

Otto’s Edge: NW… I liked him better after the show and her a lot less. Not that I thought she was funny in the first place.

From Queen of Mean to…

Miss America

NW: Jacquelyn Mayer, Katherine Shindle vs SU: Vanessa Williams

Otto’s Edge: NW… two to one and they kept their crowns

While we are on crowns, as in heads...

Highlander
NW: Clancy Brown played Kurgan vs Connor MacLeod namesake from Syracuse
Otto's Edge: SU... well he does win in the end

Other well known alumni
NW: Ana Gasteyer (SNL), Charlton Heston, Richard Kind (Cousin Andy Curb), Jayne Atkinson (Karen Hayes 24), Jane Badler (Diana V), Zach Braff (Scrubs), Richard Kline (Larry Threes Company), Seth Meyers (SNL), Stephanie March (Law & Order SVU), Garry Marshall (creator Happy Days, Laverne and Shirley, directed Pretty Woman), Charlotte Rae (Mrs Garrett), Robert Reed (Mike Brady), Jeri Ryan, David Schwimmer, Jerry Springer, McLean Stevenson (Colonel Blake M*A*S*H), Arthur Anderson, Edwin Booz and James Allen (Booz Allen Hamilton), Charles Mayo (Mayo Clinic) vs SU: Stephen Crane, Marv Albert, Len Berman, Bob Costas, Ian Eagle, Marty Glickman, Megyn Kelly, Ted Koppel, Steve Kroft, Bob Shannon, Dick Stockton, Dick Clark, Taye Diggs, Peter Falk, Carl Gottlieb, Grace Jones, Aaron Sorkin, Steve Rubell, Lexington Steele
Otto’s Edge: Push… those are impressive lists

Fake Alumnus
NW: Jim Levenstein (American Pie) vs SU: Sonny Koufax (Big Daddy)
Otto’s Edge: SU… Koufax is a good egg. But he fights like a girl.

Sticking with Big Daddy...

Daily Show
NW: Stephen Colbert (NW Grad) vs SU: Jon Stewart (played SU grad in Big Daddy)
Otto’s Edge: NW... SU needs no association with the unfunny Stewart, even if it is a fake association

Speaking of fake...

Cheating
NW: two BBall players convicted of fixing games in 1995 vs SU: Carrier Dome has no AC
Otto’s Edge: SU… cheaters never win

Getting back to sports and a lack of winning…

BBall
NW: never made NCAAs, NIT QFs last year (best finish)  vs SU: haven’t won a NCAA title since 2003
Otto’s Edge: SU… I thought we have had it bad the last few years.

Greatest BBall player

NW: Evan Eschmeyer vs SU: Dave Bing

Otto’s Edge: SU… Mayor of Detroit takes this one

A sport NW is actually good at...

Womens Lax
NW: 7 of last 8 titles vs SU: lost in final to NW this year
Otto’s Edge: SU… we don’t have to play stall ball to win

While we are on women (not literally)...

Alpha Phi
NW: headquarters are in Evanston vs SU: founded the sorority
Otto’s Edge: Push… the real winners are male students

Now let’s put the women and children to bed and go lookin for dinner...

Eatery
NW: Unos Grill vs SU: Dino BBQ
Otto’s Edge: Push... the winner here is our stomachs

While we are on pizza…

Style of Pizza

NW: Chicago vs SU: NY

Otto’s Edge: SU… thin crust is better by far

After dinner we can have an...

Ice Cream Sundae
NW: Evanston claims invented vs SU: Ithaca, Buffalo, and NYC all claim invented
Otto’s Edge: SU... we have them outnumbered

Some people may top their sundae with marshmallows, which NW students used to throw during FB games played at...

No one, and I mean no one, comes into our house and pushes us around (Home Field)
NW: Ryan Field (47150) vs SU: Carrier Dome (49250)
Otto’s Edge: NW… their stadium size is closer to the size of their fanbase. Ryan field was built in 1926. Before 1997 it was named Dyche Stadium. Parts of the Express were filmed there.

Other NW traditions include:

-Painting The Rock, a giant boulder used as a canvas/billboard
-Dance Marathon, a 30 hour dancing fundraiser. I think this started to Save Ferris.
-Primal Scream, 9pm the Sunday before finals students scream
-Dillo Day, an annual festival in May the Saturday after classes end. It started in 1972 and features an all day concert.

Staying with students…

Student size

NW: 19k vs SU: 20k

Otto’s Edge: SU… holy crap we are actually bigger than an opponent

Getting back to ice cream, my best friend's sister's boyfriend's brother's girlfriend heard from this guy who knows this kid who's going with the girl who saw Ashton Broyld at 31 Flavors last night. They said that SU maybe be running the...

Offense
NW: no huddle Spread vs SU: possibly the same?
Otto’s Edge: NW... I will believe we have changed when I see it

From Offense to Defense...

Bobby Boucher (best defender)
NW: Ibraheim Campbell vs SU: Shamwow
Otto’s Edge: Push… both Ss should be fun to watch

Philip Finch (biggest player and likely eater)

NW: Neal Deiters 6’8 315 lbs vs SU: Zion Jones 6’4 335

Otto’s Edge: SU… I heard he likes a nice juicy steak, medium rare, with little brown potatoes on the right side of the plate, ketchup on the left where some people waste space with vegetables. And for dessert a roast beef.

Jones may very well affect the outcome and our record...

Head to Head
NW: 4 wins vs SU: 5 wins
Otto’s Edge: SU… hopefully it will become 6-4 or it will be a long ride home in the Bluesmobile

Blue is not a...

School Color
NW: Purple and White vs SU: Orange
Otto’s Edge: SU… purple? The only thing worse would be pink and green.

And finally this year’s category of the week...


WWTD (what would Tebow do?)
NW: use ESPN alumni for hype vs SU: use ESPN alumni for hype
Otto's Edge: SU... with us he would feel more at home because he can also failure to score

There you have it folks, SU will pull out a 29-19 victory. And remember the numbers never lie. Enjoy the season cuz it goes by pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it. Then again that could be a good thing if our team sucks. Until next time danke schon, baby, danke schon.